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Role of Omega-3 in Secondary Prevention of CVD Questioned

Apr 12, 2012 |

Thursday, April 12 (HealthDay News) -- Sang Mi Kwak, M.D., from the Center for Cancer Prevention and Detection in Ilsan, South Korea, and colleagues conducted a meta-analysis of randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials to investigate the efficacy of eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid in the secondary prevention of CVD. The final analyses included 14 trials involving 20,485 patients with a history of CVD.

The researchers found that consuming omega-3 fatty acid supplements was not associated with a significantly reduced risk of overall cardiovascular events (relative risk [RR], 0.99), or with all-cause mortality, sudden cardiac death, myocardial infarction, congestive heart failure, or transient ischemic attack and stroke. The slight reduction in cardiovascular death (RR, 0.91) did not persist when a methodologically flawed study was excluded from the analyses. No significant preventive effect was seen in any of the subgroups analyzed.

"Our meta-analysis showed insufficient evidence of a secondary preventive effect of omega-3 fatty acid supplements against overall cardiovascular events among patients with a history of cardiovascular disease," the authors write.

The majority of the trials included in the study were funded by pharmaceutical companies.

For patients with a history of cardiovascular disease, evidence is lacking for a secondary preventive effect of omega-3 fatty acid supplements, according to a meta-analysis published online April 9 in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

Twenty percent of people with coronary artery disease experience little or no reduction in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol from statin treatment, according to research published online Feb. 26 in Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology.

Manufacturers of prescription testosterone products must change their drug labels to include a warning about increased risk of heart attacks and strokes.
The labeling change, announced today by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) addresses the use of testosterone by men whose decreased level of the hormone is due to aging.

An invasive strategy using coronary angiography results in a better outcome in elderly patients with non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndrome, according to research published in the March 1 issue of The American Journal of Cardiology.